Cambodia Rejects Thai Allegations of New Border Landmines

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (Dec. 3, 2025) — Cambodia has rejected claims by Thailand’s foreign minister published in Nikkei Asia alleging Phnom Penh is responsible for “newly laid landmines” along the Cambodia-Thailand border. Cambodian authorities called the accusations “baseless, unilateral and contrary to verified facts.”

The Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority issued a detailed statement reaffirming that Cambodia has not used anti-personnel mines since joining the Ottawa Mine Ban Convention.

The authority said the armed forces operate under strict national and international obligations and that Cambodia’s commitment to the treaty has been demonstrated through decades of transparency, cooperation and sustained mine clearance.

CMAA said any remaining contamination along the border is historical, dating back to conflicts in the 1970s through the 1990s involving multiple armed actors. It stressed Cambodia has never issued orders to lay mines and dismissed all allegations to the contrary.

The statement criticized Thailand for conducting unilateral demining operations without coordination, saying such actions undermine humanitarian efforts and contradict the cooperative spirit of the Ottawa Convention.

Highlighting its record, CMAA said Cambodia has cleared more than 3,000 square kilometers of contaminated land, destroying over 1.2 million anti-personnel mines and more than 3 million explosive remnants of war.

The authority warned that politicizing mine issues risks undermining decades of trust and progress. “Mine action must remain a humanitarian endeavor, not a tool for political escalation,” CMAA said.

Cambodia urged partners and state parties to rely on neutral expertise, verified procedures and established mechanisms rather than unilateral accusations, reiterating its commitment to peace, stability and strict compliance with the Ottawa Convention.